Federer would rely on Murray World Tour withdrawal

Roger Federer has expressed disappointment over his Shanghai Masters third round defeat to Gael Monfils and indicated he, if he had to, would rely on Andy Murray's ATP World Tour Finals withdrawal in order for him to appear at the tournament.

Monfils enjoyed a 6-4 6-7(5) 6-3 victory in just over two hours on court against the Swiss, which means Federer will have to battle to qualify for the season -ending tournament at London's O2 Arena.

On Wednesday, Murray confirmed his decision to miss the World Tour Finals in order to continue his recovery from a back injury. However, Federer stated that, while it would not be his preferred route of qualification, he would count on the Scot's absence to increase his chance of qualifying if needs be.

"I hope I don't have to rely on it [Murray's withdrawal]," Federer told atpworldtour.com. "If I have to, I have to. But that's not really what I want.

"I'm just going to focus on trying to play well. I'm just going to try to have a good tournament in Basel and Paris. In the end, if I get the invite, I'll be there."